Women's Work

Crochet doilies! Reupholster side chairs! Win drawing contests!

So many choices.

I scrambled to finish a new piece in time for an event this past Wednesday evening. The source material for this one was a 1960s issue of Work Basket magazine, a publication for women that featured fashion ideas, sewing patterns and craft projects. I bought it thinking the outfits were humorous and the craft projects even more so.  Anyone want to make a toilet paper cover doll? (Google it.)

However, like many of my pieces, the more I started working with the magazine pages, the more I started noticing the subtle messages, particularly the advertisements promoting "career" options for women. Crochet doilies! Reupholster side chairs! Win drawing contests! Learn shorthand at home! So many options. The publisher seemed to know their audience was both desperate for any source of personal income and incredibly resourceful, creative and determined to find independence. AND she could do all of these things all the while wearing the new Compresso Belt to keep that tummy tucked securely.

Fast forward almost sixty years to my event on Wednesday evening, an art social with forty members of YPO Women Executives attending a national conference here in Austin. These women lead organizations in a wide variety of business sectors around the globe. Even in the brief time I spent with them, they were smart, funny, personable and clearly comfortable in their leadership roles.

But what struck me most was their confidence. Take Lucia. She walked into my studio, surveyed the entire room and walked directly towards a wall with three of my most recent textile paintings. She quizzed me about my process. She asked about the source materials used in these particular pieces and was particularly drawn to one that incorporated a 1930s magic book. She discussed the work with a friend. She looked at some other pieces but came back to the first ones. She left the studio, but about five minutes later, she returned. "I'll take all three," she said.

Her friend asked her if she knew where she would put the three pieces. She shook her head and said:

"I don't know. I just know that I like them."

I wish I could bottle that kind of confidence and share it. Art is incredibly subjective, but so many of us are afraid to trust our instincts. Is it good? Is it worth it? Where would I put it? Does it match the sofa? If you have never bought a piece of art simply because it "spoke to you,"

I encourage you to try it. The East Austin Studio Tour (November 16, 17, 23, 24) is one of the best and easiest ways to find original art in all price ranges, styles and sizes. When you see something that catches your eye, holds your attention and continues to haunt you even after you leave the studio, go back and make it yours! You will find a place for it and it will continue to bring you joy— just because you like it.